Your thermostat plays a critical role in keeping you comfortable. But because they are so “hands off”, you may not quickly detect that there’s a problem with the thermostat. Your thermostat, particularly the smart ones that are readily available nowadays, is designed to function when necessary by increasing or reducing the temperature in the house.

It does this by detecting when the temperature is high in the room, causing the AC to funnel more cool air into the space and vice versa. Therefore, if your AC unit continues to run when the thermostat should have kicked in and shut it off, then you have a thermostat problem that needs fixing.

Refrigerant Leakages

The refrigerant is meant to help your AC unit extract heat and send cool air back into the home through the vents. When your AC starts leaking this, it means your unit has to work extra hard to keep you cool, while the coil gradually freezes.

This leakage can happen courtesy of consistent wear and tear in the system. However, it’s difficult to identify this problem if you don’t know what to look for. This is why you need to carry out routine maintenance schedules on your AC units.

Doing this will help identify any early refrigerant leakages, resulting in cost savings that would have been necessary if the air conditioner breaks down. When this happens, all you need to do is either top up the refrigerant levels after the fixing the leakages or just get yourself a new system as the leaks may happen again.

Dirty Air Filters and Coil

Your air filters are responsible for extracting dirt, dust, and airborne particles from your air conditioning unit. So, when it’s dirty, not only you have more allergens, dust and pollen circulating around indoors, your AC would also work harder to keep you cool.

This cycle of increased energy consumption and no blocked filters can cause the unit to freeze. This is why you need to have your air filters cleaned regularly or replaced if the damage is too far gone. This is usually part of every routine air conditioning system’s maintenance procedure.

Blocked and Restricted Air Ducts

Check out your air vents and ducts, both in the air conditioner unit outside and the vents in the house. This is important because when one or more of these are blocked, it can affect your system.

This is why you should ensure all supply registers are properly opened and free of any obstructions like draperies, clothing materials, boards or furniture. The same also applies to the drainage pipe that should channel condensates away from the AC. If it’s blocked, your AC could freeze up.

Damaged Blower Parts

Your air conditioning unit has a fan that helps circulate air around your coils. When there’s too much dust or dirt attached to the blades, the fan will blow slower, resulting in a frozen coil. A slow fan can be as a result of damaged/weak coils, or you may need to increase the fan’s speed. Whatever the case, check the fans to see if they are blowing optimally.